"It's been quite a week of celebration for the East Liberty Auto Plant (ELP) in Ohio, which marked production of its 5 millionth vehicle – fittingly, a 2016 Acura RDX. I say "fittingly" because the significantly refreshed and redesigned 2016 RDX went on-sale this week at Acura dealerships and ELP is its exclusive home.
ELP has quite a history as Honda's second auto plant in America, last year marking its 25th anniversary, and its product portfolio includes two critical products: the Honda CR-V, America's best-selling SUV, and the Acura RDX, one half of the best one-two punch in the luxury SUV space. And we have more challenges on the way as it was announced earlier this year that ELP will expand its portfolio in 2017 with the addition of the Acura MDX, to be dual sourced from Alabama and Ohio.
Over the past year, the plant has undergone more than $180 million worth of innovations to advance its efficiency and capabilities, including a renovated paint department and nearly half a million square feet of new space for production and quality inspection – as well as a new parts consolidation center to increase the efficiency of parts delivery to our doors.
I want to thank the incredibly dedicated and hard-working team of associates at ELP – past and present – who have worked to deliver truly world-class products to our Honda and Acura customers. We all look forward to the next quarter century of challenges and celebrations our associates at the East Liberty plant will deliver."
Tom Shoupe
Chief Operating Officer
Honda of America Mfg., Inc.